Typewriting machine



July 20, 1926.

c. OLIVETTI TYPEWRITING mamma- Filed June so. 1925 2*SheetS-Sheet 1 127 x2710 011 vs z 'lz' July 20 1926.

c. OLlVETTl TYPEWRITING MACHINE Filed Juhe' 50, 1925 2 sheets-Shea 2 De/enfar:

Patented July 20, 1926.

PATEN'T' OFFICE.

CAMILLO OLIVE TTI, OF IVREA, ITALY.

TYPEWRITING MACHINE.

Application filed June 80, 1925, Serial No. 40,568, and in Italy November 26, 1924.

The present invention relates to typewriting machines, and more particularly to the type bar actions with which such machines are equipped; its object being the provision of an improved type bar action which insures the transmission of the forces set up .by the depression of a key lever to the associated type bar to. operate the latter without producing any strains or stresses which would tend to act injuriously upon the moving parts.

According to the invention, each key lever is linked to a bell-crank lever which, in turn, operates a rod that is connected through the intermediary of a sub-lever to the associated type bar; the arrangement of parts being such that the key lever, link and ell'crank move in a common vertical plane, and the sub-lever and type bar in a radial plane, while the rod is situated at the intersection of these two planes and, hence, in a sense lies in both of them, whereby any twisting or torsional strains are avoided, due to the pivotal connections between the several parts.

The invention also resides in rigidly connecting together the upper and lower notched segments wherein the type bars and sub-levers are mounted and guided for 80- movement vert-ically as a unit, such movement beingutilized to effect the shift from upper to lower case. and vice versa without entailing any movement of the platen, which latter remains stationary. Other and further objects and improvements are involved in the invention and) will be explained in .the course of the following detailed description.

' In the accompanying drawings:

Figure 1 is aside view of the complete lever system comprised in the invention and applied by way of example, to one of the central type bars; the notched guide plates and other supporting parts are shown in section, but all devlces not definitely related to the actual invent-ion are omitted.

Fig. 2 is a front View, showing the connected upper and lower notched segments and, also, one of the side type bars and its associated sub-lever.

Fig. 3 is a detail view of the pivot carrier of one of the bell-cranks.

Fig. 4 is a plan view of a slightly modified form of key lever.

Figs. 5 and 6 are fragmental views in side elevation and plan, respectively, of one of the keys. 7

Figs. 7 and 8 are side views of further modified forms of key levers.

Referring more particularly to the drawings, the key lever 2 which, for general purposes, may be regarded as typical of all the levers of that class, terminates, at its front end, as usual, in a ke its rear end to a horlzontal rod or wire 3 that extends the entire width of the key board. This wire 3 is supported in a groove formed in a notched guide late 4, the ends of which are fastenedto the opposite side members of the machine frame; the notches in the plate being equidistantly spaced and receiving therein the rear ends of the'key levers, which latter are thereby caused to move in parallel vertical planes.

The key lever 2 has pivotally connected to its central portion at 5, the lower end of a vertical link 6, the upper end of which is pivotally connected at 7 to the upper arm of a bell-crank 8. The latter is mounted at its apex on a pivot pin 9 carried by a forked or slotted stud 10 (Fig. 3) which is provided for apurpose subsequent-1y explained, said stud being mounted in the front plate 11 and held in place by a nut 28. The lower arm of the bell-crank is connected by a pivot 27 to the front end of a rod 12 that carries on its threaded rear end a head 15, so that by rotating said head in the roper direction the length of therod may e adjusted as desired; and said head, in turn, carries a pivot 16 which passes through the central portion of a sub-lever 13.

The sub-lever 13 is' pivoted at its lower end on an arcuate' wire 14 mounted in a slot formed in asegmental plate 19 which likewise extends the entire width of the key board and is provided with spaced guide notches to receive the aforesaid ends of the sub-levers; this plate forming the lower member of a bodily-movable unit, of which the upper member is constituted by the type bar segment 23, as hereinafter more fully described. The upper end of the sub-lever carries a ,pin or stud 17 having a head 18 (Fig. 2), and this stud works in a slot 20 formed in the heel of the type bar 21; the

latter being pivotally mounted on an arcuate wire 22 which is disposed in a slot formed 1 and is pivoted at in the previously-mentioned plate or seg. ment 23. The last-named element is provided with guide slots for the type bars, as usual, and is disposed directly above the segment 19; the two segments being rigidly connected together at their ends, as represented in Fig. 2, to enable them to move bodily up or down as a unit, for which purpose they are pivotally connected at their backs with the rear wall or member of the machine frame by pairs of links 30 and 32 that jointly form a parallel-motion device. The upper links 30 are attached at opposite ends to pivots 31 and 34 carried by suitable lugs or projections on the plate 23 and rear frame wall, respectively, and the ends of the lower links 32 are similarly connected to the segment 19 and the aforesaid frame wall at 33 and 34; but this particular link mounting, while preferred, can be replaced by any other mounting which will permit the desired vertical movement of the unit, the latter having also connected to it the cushion 24 whereon the type bars rest in normal or lowered position. Thevertical movement in question serves, as will be understood, to raise or lower the type basket so as to bring the types on the type bars into upper or lower case printing position with relation to the printing line on the roller platen 26, which latter remains stationary during the case-shift operation which may be efiected in the usual Way by means of the shift keys.

The letter-feeding and ribbon-vibrating operations may likewise be effected in the ordinary manner by the action of the key levers and type bars, respectively; but since the intermediate devices which directly pro- .duce these operations form in themselves no part of the actual invention, they have not been illustrated. For all present purposes, it is believed sufiicient to state that the various key levers are provided with depending projections 35 which, when a key is depressed, are caused to bear down upon the transversely-arranged universal bar 36 which is connected in some suitable way with the carriage escapement. The type bars, on the other hand, are shaped adjacent the oints -Where they engage the suspension 'Wlle or pivot 22 in such a manner as to bear upwardly against an arcuate bar 37 which is connected with the escapement vibrator and also with the segment 23 so that it notonly actuates the vibrator but overlies the Wire sponding type bar in the same plane so that the notches therefor in the segments 19 and 23 are in radial alinement, as indicated in Fig. 2; but each key lever 2 and the associated link 6 and bell-crank 8, however, move in the same vertical plane. The location of the pivots 16 which connect the sub-levers to the heads on the rods 12 is determined by the intersection of the planes of the key levers 2 and bell-cranks 8 with the radial planes of the type bars and the sub-levers. The vertical arms of all the bell-cranks have the same length, but the horizontal (or substantially horizontal) arms thereof are of diiferent lengths according to the type bars with which they are associated. Because of this arrangement, the supporting plate 11 which carries the studs 10 is made of arcuate shape, and the studs themselves can be turned or adjusted in the openings in said plate so that the pins 9 may be brought into horizontal position.

In consequence of the above arrangement, it will be seen that each rod 12 lies in the line of intersection between the radial plane defined by the associated sub-lever and type bar and the vertical plane defined by the corresponding key lever, connecting link and bell-crank. The said rod may thus be regarded as situated in both planes specified so that it can transmit the forces from key lever to type bar under identical conditions throughout the key board and without setting up any injurious resultant strains or stresses regardless of the inclination of the type bars; and all key actions, both those at the center of the key board and type basket and those at the sides or ends thereof, will operate with the same ra idity and lightness of touch. As all the key levers 2 must be spaced at practically the same distance apart, the angles between the type bars necessarily vary because they are determined by the intersection of the several parallel vertical planes wherein the parts 2, 6 and 8 lie with the are formed by the row of pivots 16 (i. e., the junction points of the rods 12 with the sub-levers 13). This variation also satisfies the practically necessary condition that the type carried by the type bars be spaced a sufficient distance apart in their horizontal position of rest, and the fact that the space occupied by the types in such position increases with the increasing of the angular bend of the type bar at AA (Fig. 1). The key levers may, however, be offset centrally, as represented in Fig. 4, to compensate in certain circumstances for slight inaccuracies or irregularities in positioning the notches in the plates 4, 19 or 23.

As further regards the key levers, these parts may have return springs 25 attached to them so as to efi'ect the desired quick return movement of the associated type bars; the tension ofthe springs being regulated by means of screws 29 are mounted in a pro returns to its normal position.

'whi'c is slidably engaged .heel; anda rod pivo y jecting portion of plate 4 and with which the springs are engaged at one end, the other end of the springs being engaged with the key levers. The keys proper 1 with which said levers are provided may be formed from the metal of t e levers themselves, as shown in Figs. 5 a d 6, by striking out and then bending into horizontal position a smallcircular disk to which the key cap is directly secured. Increased resilience and lighter touch may also be obtained by forming the rear portion of the key lever as illustrated in Figs. 7 and 8. In both cases, it will be observed that the strip of metal from which the lever is constructed is about half as long again as the lever shown in Fig. 1, and that this excess length, so to speak, occurs at the rear end of t e lever an is bent backward \lPQIl the body of the lever, thus forming a. fork. The free erid of the said bent portion is connected to the lower end of the link 6, so

same as before, in s ite of the actual increase in the length of t e lever blank. In the form represented in Fig. 7, the bent part overlies the rear portion of the lever, whereas in Fig. 8 it underlies such portion, and

the said rear portion of the lever is ofiset downwardly from the front portion in Fig. 7 and upwardly therefrom in Fi 8. In the latter case, the free end 38 of t e bent part to which the end of link 6 is pivoted is turned upward, as shown; this construction havin the advantage that a very light touch 18 s bar itself is obtained, due to the fact that the upper arm of the lever first comes to bear upon the end 38 of the lower arm and then transmits its motion to link 6, and after having overcome .the inertia of the system cient to eifectively operate the I claim as my invention l. A tyyie bar aetionfor typewriters, 'comprising a eyolever; a bell-crank fulcrumed at its apex 'a ve the key lever; a depending link pivoted at its upper end to the upper arm of the bell-crank and at its lower end to the key lever; a ivotally-mounted ty bar having a slot heel; a vertical su lever pivotally supported at its lower end and provided at its upper end with, a stud the slot in said nnected at .opposite ends' to the lower arm of the bell-crank and the sub-lever.

2. A type bar action for typewriters, comprising a keyblever; a bell-crank fuIc-rumed at its apex a ve the key lever; a depending link pivoted at its upperend to the upper arm of the bell-crank and at its lower end 1, in which the key lever, the link and the bell-crank are dis osed in a common vertical plane, while t e type bar and sub-lever are disposed in a common radial lane which that the length of the lever arms remains the intersects said vertical plane a ong a substantially-horizontal line; and in which the rod normally coincides with said line of intersection so as to lie in both planes.

4. In a typewriter, the combination of a vertically-movable unit embodying spaced upper and lower notched se connected together at their a jacent ends; a parallel-motion device for guiding said unit- 'm its movements embodying upper and lower pairs of links pivotally connected at opposite ends to the corresponding segments and the rear member of the typewriter pe framea set of type bars pivotally supportand-that a very quick stroke ofthe ar' ed and guided by the upper segment; a set of sub-levers operatively connected with the cuts rigidly type bars and pivotally supported and guided. by the lower se ment, said sets of type bars and sub-levers Iieingmovable vertically bodilly with the respective segments," aset of ke evers; a set of bell-cranks, one indivi ual to each key lever and sub-lever; pivoted at their apices above the key levers; a

.depending link pivoted at its upper end to the upper arm-of each ,bell-cran and at its lower end to the corresponding key lever;

and a rod pivotally connected at its front end to the lower arm of each bell-crank and {it its rear end to the corresponding subever. r

H .In testimony whereof I atiix. my signature.

Ina. 'OLIVETTI. 

